SD Humane Society adopting out in East County

The San Diego Humane Society and SPCA is opening a new adoption center to make it more convenient for East County residents to find the perfect shelter pet.

The Petco store at 540 N. Second St. in El Cajon will have a grand opening event to mark the occasion from 4 to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 12, with celebratory festivities continuing all weekend long.

The city also has its own shelter with adoptable pets at 1275 N. Marshall Ave. The El Cajon Animal Shelter is open 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

Petco and the Humane Society have set a goal to find homes for 50 animals throughout the grand opening weekend. The adoption center will be a permanent fixture at the store.

It is the first time the Humane Society has partnered with a pet store for adoptions, and its first official foray into the East County. The group has long had a presence on Gaines Street in central San Diego; its North County campus opened in Oceanside in June 2011.

In conjunction with East County Animal Rescue, there will be puppies, dogs, kittens, cats and rabbits available at the new adoption center.

“We’re proud to partner with Petco to open our newest adoption center, which will be more accessible to adopters in the East County area,” said Dr. Gary Weitzman, president of the San Diego Humane Society and SPCA in a news release. “We’ve greatly increased our adoption goals this fiscal year, and this adoption center is an additional step towards achieving that goal. It will help us reach more adopters to find homes for even more animals in our care.”

On Dec. 12, and throughout the weekend, there will be raffle prizes, giveaways, photographs with Santa, live in-store radio broadcast from The Walrus 105.7 FM, along with pet adoptions.

There will also be opportunities to donate to Petco Foundation’s Tree of Hope Fundraiser to help local animal shelters.